Oakland County commissioner wants air conditioning improved at animal control building in Auburn Hills

When temperatures rise, animals suffer at the Oakland County Animal Control/Pet Adoption Center located at 1700 Brown Road in Auburn Hills.

County Commissioner Marcia Gershenson, a Democrat in the 13th District, covering parts of Bloomfield and West Bloomfield townships and Farmington Hills, is working toward the goal of providing air conditioning to the animal shelter.

"Due to proactive financial planning, for the first time in many years, Oakland County has a financial surplus. Cooling our animals would be a great way to utilize some of our surplus," she said.

Gershenson is a leading proponent of improving the situation at the animal center. As a member of the Planning and Building Committee, she toured the center to assess how it's being run. At that time, Gershenson noted the lack of air conditioning for the animals to be a serious issue.

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Filled to capacity with more than 400 cats and dogs during the recent heat wave, center manager Bob Gatt said the staff attempted to keep the animals cool with fans, frozen water bottles and floor air conditioners donated by businesses and private citizens.

When temperatures soared into the mid-90s last week, Detroit Bus Company founder and president, Andy Didorosi, rented a 20-ton portable air conditioning unit and a diesel generator to power it for the remainder of the summer after hearing the center didn't have air conditioning.

Built in 1974 and purchased by the county in 1981, the center wasn't built to utilize central air conditioning, and the portable unit is a temporary solution to a long-standing problem.

Gershenson said that former center manager Larry Obrecht tried for years to get central air conditioning installed at the center, establishing a Legacy Fund to work toward that goal.

Art Holdsworth, Director of Facilities Management, said an air conditioning unit would have to be installed on the roof and that health codes require, "cycling air through the building -- cool air in, hot air out. It'd run constantly." Holdsworth estimates the cost to purchase central air for the center would be between $150,000 and $250,000, with estimated annual preventative maintenance and repair costs between $10,000 and $15,000, and estimated electrical costs in excess of $30,000 per month.

For more information about the Oakland County Animal Control/Pet Adoption Center, contact them at 248-391-4100.